Lifeguards, junior lifeguards participate in relay to raise skin cancer awareness
From left, Carpinteria-Summerland Fire Department Capt. Nick Koepenick, CSFD Firefighter Taylor Barnett and California State Parks/Ventura Ocean lifeguard Taylor Plasch gather at Carpinteria State Beach. The SoCal Paddle Down for Cancer Relay went by the beach on Friday.
Imagine a 250-mile ocean paddle relay.
The distance stretches from Gaviota to the border with Mexico, and the trek is raising awareness for an important cause: skin cancer awareness.
Participants are lifeguards and junior lifeguards, who are out on their paddle boards to help the John Wayne Cancer Foundation.
On Friday, they went by the shores of Carpinteria and Ventura County beaches before going toward the Los Angeles County leg of the 250-mile journey. The participants in the SoCal Paddle Down for Cancer Relay consisted of lifeguards and junior lifeguards from Ventura State, Ventura County, Port Hueneme and Point Mugu State beaches.
The relay started June 1 at Gaviota State Beach and involves more than 25 lifeguard agencies. It will end at Imperial Beach near the border with Mexico.
Each leg features a pair of paddlers navigating custom-designed 12-feet prone Deep Ocean Boards paddleboards equipped with SPOT Gen 4 and Trace satellite GPS monitoring devices to track their progress.
At least two paddlers are deployed because it is always safer to paddle with a buddy, according to a news release from the California Surf Lifesaving Association.
Raising awareness about skin cancer is important to the lifeguards in the 250-mile trek.
“As lifeguards, we spend the majority of our careers in the sun, and we know the dangers of sun exposure,” said Bill Humphreys, president of the California Surf Lifesaving Association in the news release. “The SoCal PaddleDown” is a great way of raising awareness about the dangers of sun exposure, and the JWCF is providing the next generation of lifeguards the tools and information to prevent and detect skin cancer.”
In California, an estimated one in three residents will be diagnosed with skin cancer during their lifetime. Nearly all skin cancer is curable if caught early and treated quickly. Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the U.S. with nearly 4 million people diagnosed annually, according to the John Wayne Cancer Foundation.
“Sun damage is cumulative, so the sooner we can provide lifesaving information to our youth, the better,” said Lauren Fraga, senior program director of JWCF. “Each summer, nearly 25,000 junior lifeguards learn how to be sun safe through our ‘Block the Blaze’ presentations, after which they are given sunscreen and a hat to immediately implement sun safety. We are grateful to the CSLSA for helping the JWCF promote sun safety.”
The “Block the Blaze” program is the official partner of the CSLSA to provide skin cancer education to Junior Lifeguards throughout California. To support this effort with donations, visit jwcf.org.
email: dmason@newspress.com
